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carmanj's review against another edition
4.0
Book No. 4 in Thomas King's mystery series featuring ex-cop Thumps DreadfulWater. King writes with great style and sardonic humour. Thumps is an excellent character, world-weary and sympathetic. I'm really digging this series!
gitli57's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
4.0
This series just keeps getting better. There's always enough going on beneath the surface, especially with Thumps, that it doesn't become too cozy.
megalithic28's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
oceanwader's review against another edition
3.0
Didn't enjoy this one as much as books 2 and 3 of the series. The character development in those two, especially book 3, was exceptionally well done. This one felt to be more of a transitional work to shift Thumps from his depressed, stagnant existence in Chinook to the expected fulfillment/resolution of matters left undone, which are the subject of book 5, The Obsidian Murders.
A Matter of Malice was slow to start, the mystery not all that compelling, the Thumps I've grown to like not his usual self and the usual town characters pretty much off stage.
mlafaive's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
nkreads's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
thepoptimist's review against another edition
3.0
Thumps DreadfulWater is about as unlikely a name as you can get for a detective. He's a diabetic ex-officer turned photographer who, as the book opens, isn't sure if he's suddenly single, isn't sure if his car is a complete write-off and isn't sure what's going with his cat - who has decided to move in with a family down the road instead.
It's the fourth in Thomas King's DreadfulWater series - though you don't have to have read the previous three to jump right in. Cold case resurrecting, reality TV show, Malice Aforethought is in town to explore the suicide of the poor little rich girl who took a nose dive off a cliff years ago. Her family has always maintained that the brooding loner from the reserve, now a successful author, was responsible for her death.
When the TV show producer dies off the same cliff, in the same way, things really get interesting.
But before that we get Thumps trudging between a cast of unique characters from Stas Black Weasel, the bearlike Russian mechanic to Archimedes Kousloulas the Greek bookstore owner to Alvera Couteau the diner operator known to hold a grudge. It's a bit of local flair set to distract us from a bit of a plodding story. DreadfulWater does his best "I'm too old for this shit" but by the 20th chapter one can't help but think he doth protest too much. It's formulaic but cozy, and it give King plenty of space to judiciously leave clues for the reader. Pure comfort food.
It's the fourth in Thomas King's DreadfulWater series - though you don't have to have read the previous three to jump right in. Cold case resurrecting, reality TV show, Malice Aforethought is in town to explore the suicide of the poor little rich girl who took a nose dive off a cliff years ago. Her family has always maintained that the brooding loner from the reserve, now a successful author, was responsible for her death.
When the TV show producer dies off the same cliff, in the same way, things really get interesting.
But before that we get Thumps trudging between a cast of unique characters from Stas Black Weasel, the bearlike Russian mechanic to Archimedes Kousloulas the Greek bookstore owner to Alvera Couteau the diner operator known to hold a grudge. It's a bit of local flair set to distract us from a bit of a plodding story. DreadfulWater does his best "I'm too old for this shit" but by the 20th chapter one can't help but think he doth protest too much. It's formulaic but cozy, and it give King plenty of space to judiciously leave clues for the reader. Pure comfort food.
m_figg's review against another edition
3.0
I love the fiction of Thomas King, and I like his mysteries OK. The plots come together all of a sudden (too sudden for me), but I really love King's characters, and his sense of humor. He's a waaaay better writer than Tony Hillerman, so if you want to read mysteries that take place in "Indian country" by a Native Canadian author, pick up King instead.